Stereotypes

In our community, there are tons of stereotypes, some I've never even heard of. But many common stereotypes include people living in Los Altos Hills are wealthy, people living in Mountain View aren't, people who go to private schools are privileged, Asian students always get perfect grades, people who dress nicely most hold a high position (CEO,CFO). The list goes on and on. After a semester in Global, I have definitely viewed others in a different light. Although I would never consider myself prejudiced against others, I will admit that I do have unconscious bias. I try my best to not see people just based off their appearances, but sometimes it does slip my mind. In one video we watched, a black man was faced with racial bias at every turn. People wouldn't hold the door for him, or let him in on an elevator. They would "bump" into him and not even say sorry. This video had no words, but the imagery was crystal clear. People didn't see the man, they just saw his race. In the end of the video, the black man was revealed as a Judge in a court of law. Those same people who didn't let him on the elevator ended up having to stand when he walked into the room. It just goes to show that there's almost always more than what meets the eye. Everyday, the unconscious bias and preconceived notions we have of other people cloud our judgement. They prevent us from seeing the truth, but instead mold our minds into something we can understand and connect with. Recently, I started working at a retail job where sometimes we have to look out for YC's. YC's are people who are more skeptical than others. They seem like the people who would be more likely to shop lift/steal. Although we still treat them with the same kindness and respect as any customer, probably the best customer service they'll ever receive, there's always a fine line. People may look suspicious but end up being very genuine and possibly wealthy. One of many reasons why we treat YC's the same is because we would never want to assume one's identity. It's always extremely difficult to go about a situation where someone you meet might not seem to be who they say they are. But in the end, it's always best to be kind and caring. It's important to treat everyone the same, despite the many differences. To overcome stereotypes and treat people based off them, not the category they're "supposed" to be in.